Bhubaneswar: Twenty hospitals will be set up across Odisha in the public private partnership (PPP) mode.

The decision to this effect was taken by chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday.

Private investments to the tune of Rs 1,000 crore are expected to come for the establishment of these health care facilities to be set up under the Odisha Health Sector Investment Policy, 2016.

The hospitals will be established on hub and spoke model. While some of them will function as central or hub hospitals, the remaining others will act as branch hospitals or spokes.

While spoke model hospitals will have surgery, medicine, gynaecology, pediatric, orthopaedic, anaesthesia, eye, ear, nose and throat (ENT), dental, radiology, pathology, psychiatry, skin, critical care, emergency and trauma care departments, treatment facilities in cardiology and neuro-surgery will also be available in the hub hospitals.

Official sources said 11 high-priority districts such as tribal-dominated Koraput, Kalahandi, Nuapara, Malkangiri, Nabarangpur, Rayagada, Kandhamal, Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj have been included under the Affordable Healthcare Project. Twenty locations have been identified for the project - Puri, Jeypore, Angul, Barbil, Baripada, Bhadrak, Balangir, Jharsuguda, Bhawanipata, Phulbani, Dhenkanal, Boudh, Nuapada, Malkangiri, Nabarangpur, Sonepur, Raygada, Parlakhemundi, Rairangpur and Kendrapara.

"These hospitals will have a total bed strength of minimum 2,700, which meet the shortfall of beds by 57 per cent," said health minister Pratap Jena.

Such hospitals will get accreditation from the National Accreditation Board for Hospitals and Healthcare Providers and 50 per cent of their beds will be in general wards. Patients will get the treatment and diagnostic facilities under all the health insurance and assurance schemes of the Odisha government.

Last week, Naveen had announced a new health scheme called Biju Swasthya Surkasha Yojana, under which free diagnostic, treatment and medicines worth up to Rs 5 lakh will be available per family. The government has also decided to abolish the collection of user fees at all the government health care facilities.

The Centre is also introducing a similar health scheme called Ayushman Bharat Yojana (popularly known as Modicare scheme), under which a health insurance cover up to Rs 5 lakh will be available and around 1.5 lakh wellness centres will be opened across the country. However, the Odisha government has refused to take part in the scheme, stating that it has got a better scheme under which more people will be benefited.